“Here. But no background checks. Otherwise, I’ll be the creepy one instead of him.”
“It doesn’t work that way. You’re too pretty to be creepy.”
Outwardly, I rolled my eyes, but internally… I swallowed hard, my mouth suddenly dry. This reaction right here. This was why I needed to date. I needed this date to go well so I could get off the god-awful dating app and get past my crush on Luke.
“PatsFan? Seriously? That was the best he could do?” Luke’s unimpressed gaze bored into me, and his brow quirked. “And what is this? Red isn’t even your favorite color. It’s blue.” He shook his head and handed me back my phone.
He was right. It was blue. I only used red in my handlebecause it was a nod to my wild, curly red hair.
“He looks boring. Next.”
“Hey, he’s been really nice.”
Luke crossed his arms over his broad chest, his face stony and irritated.
“You should cancel. He’s not the guy for you.”
“I’m not canceling,” I huffed back at him. He had been in a massive mood for the past few days, only lightening up after the arrest was made. Apparently, he was back to his grumpy ways now. “What’s up with you, anyway?”
“Fine, go on the date. But if anything at all feels off with his dude, or you need an excuse to leave his twenty-minute monologue on cheese or whatever the fuck a guy like him wants to talk about, you call me.”
“Fine,” I told him. “But it’s going to go great.”
* * *
Good Lord, this man was boring. No monologue on cheese, thankfully, but the current topic of conversation wasn’t much better.
“It isn’t just the interest rates that are affecting things. House prices are up across the board and are continuing to rise. Although all the models are indicating there should be a slowdown in the rapidity of price increases, there is still a deficit in the number of houses for sale compared to the number of home buyers in the market. The supply and demand economics…”
Eddie continued to enlighten me on the economicsof the housing industry, despite the fact that I told him I wasn’t in the market for a home right now. The apartment I had been living in since I moved to Calla Bay had more than enough space for just me. The landlord had let me paint the walls a charming light blue color, and my elderly neighbor downstairs, George, had become my buddy. I would bring him dinner some nights, and we’d play checkers together.
The modern, black pendant lights that hung over our table didn’t illuminate the space very much. The dimness in the restaurant created a romantic atmosphere while instrumental music played softly in the background. The onyx-black tables were smooth and shiny. A small black glass vase with a single red rose sat amongst our plates of food. Benson’s catered to the tourists that filtered through town in the summer months, specifically the wealthy ones, and the upscale, elegant vibe proved it.
I blinked my way back to the conversation. Eddie had asked me something.
“I’m sorry. I missed that.”
“It’s okay. It wasn’t important,” Eddie said with a slight pinking of his cheeks. “Being on a date with a beautiful lady makes me nervous, and I ramble when I’m nervous. About the housing market, apparently.”
I smiled at the compliment, relaxing a little knowing this wasn’t his usual personality. It actually made him more endearing. “Besides work, what do you like to do?”
He hesitated before he answered. “I’m not really sure. I work, I watch some TV, maybe have a beer with some friends. I don’t live a very adventurous life,” he chuckled. “What about you?”
“I love adventure,” I told him honestly. “Last year, I went toPeru on a solo trip to zipline through the Amazon rainforest. I’ve been bouldering in Utah at the Zion National Park. Skydiving, hiking, scuba diving. I love all of that.”
“Oh, wow. I could never do that.” Eddie’s eyes were round, a spark of fear lighting them up.
“It’s not for everyone. Most of my adventures I do on my own or through a tour company. I don’t know many people who are up for all that either.”
“I am thoroughly impressed by you, Scarlett Hart.”
Conversation flowed more easily for the rest of the meal. Eddie was sweet and smart. The classic “nice guy.” By the time our dinner was coming to an end, I was surprised to realize that I’d really enjoyed my evening with him.
The server put the check on the table, closed behind the leather receipt book. I grabbed my purse, intent on splitting the bill.
“Please put your purse down. My mother would murder me if she found out I didn’t pick up the tab on a date.” Eddie huffed a laugh. I bit my lip to stop myself from laughing at the small noises he made. His dorkiness had a charm of its own.
“Well, we wouldn’t want that,” I said.
